I'll Be Home For Christmas: The Extended Version
by Finaille Nailo
Summary: On Christmas Eve, Ash and Misty get into a huge fight. 10 years later, they meet again, but Ash is in disguise. Misty doesn't recognize Ash and shuns him, but Ash is determined to get Misty back, forever. R&R! Extended from original story! FINISHED!
1. How This All Got Started

I'll Be Home For Christmas- The Extended Version

Part 1

By Finaille Nailo

A/N- REVISED CHAPTER!  
  
"I don't really think it's that great of an idea to camp when it's this cold out. Plus, it's CHRISTMAS EVE!" Misty says, shivering a little.

"Well, I would normally agree with you on that one Misty, but the Winter Tournament starts in two days, and we really can't get there by staying at a Pokemon Center, feeling happy we are inside and drinking hot cocoa." Brock says.

"Cheer up a little Misty, at least it's not THAT cold considering the route outside of Ecruteak can be much worse." Ash pipes in. "And, we're at least 10 or so miles from any means of civilization. So, you'd better get used to it." Misty starts humming to herself to try to get her mind off the chilly weather.

"Toge..." Misty's little Pokemon also starts complaining because of the cold. Misty walks over to her, and pulls a small blanket out of her backpack.

"Here Togepi." She says as she wraps the small blanket around the tiny Pokemon, sets her backpack down, and places Togepi in her backpack.

"Hey guys, do you wanna get some firewood while I go out and try to find some water?" Brock suggests.

"Yeah, that's no problem." Ash says, as he finishes setting up his tent. Brock leaves to go find water.

"I've got some stuff to finish up," Misty starts, "Ash, do you think you can do it alone?"

"Yeah." Ash frowns. "Whatcha gonna do anyways?"

"It's... nothing." Misty says, pausing. "I mean, it's something, but I'd rather not say anything."

"Aww... does Misty have some P.M.S. problems?" Ash smirks.

THWACK!

"Owww." Ash moans, rubbing his head.

"Serves you right." Misty says with a grin, swinging her mallet to rest behind her back.

"Heh. I'm going before things get a little too dangerous." Ash stands up. "Come on Pikachu."

"Pika." He rubs the back of his fuzzy yellow head, then hops onto Ash's shoulder.

"Shouldn't be gone too long." Ash waves and heads off into the forest. Misty yawns and looks off into the setting sun and thinks to herself…

__

It's Christmas Eve, and tomorrow's not gonna be too glamorous either. She says to Togepi. She removes Togepi from her backpack, and digs around for a little bit. She pulls out a small box._ I still have to wrap their presents._

She opens the box labeled "Ash", and smiles when she looks at the present. It was a charm bracelet. She knew he would never wear it, but glancing at Ash's backpack, she smiles at the little knick-knacks that were put on the zippers. He still had the Misty doll that Misty made for him for his birthday a few years ago. Poorly done, but he still kept it.

Glancing back to the charm bracelet, there were only two charms on it. A Pikachu charm and another larger charm that said "Friends Forever" and on the back it says, "I'll always love you."  
Misty freezes. She completely forgot what she was going to tell Ash the next morning… she had to tell him how she felt. Misty's fist clenches to the thought of Brock blackmailing her to tell him. She didn't have much of a choice, tell Ash how she felt or have Brock show Ash her diary. He already had possession of that. She laughs a little.

She looks up into the night sky, the first stars finally becoming visible. She closes her eyes as sleep overtakes her body.  
  
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"Misty?" A voice says. Misty looks about.

"Who's there?" She asks, with a little fear imminent in her voice.

"Who's there? It's me, Brock! Aren't you coming down?" He asks. Misty opens her eyes, to see she was in a room. Posters of her favorite bands lined the walls, and a computer on a work desk. She was lying on a bed. She scrunches up her eyebrows in confusion, and walks to the door.

She looks down at herself, a much taller Misty. She wasn't wearing the clothing she was just wearing. She looks at herself through the mirror in her room. She had gotten much… older.

"Yeah... coming!" She yells, walking down the stairs. After searching the house for a while, she finds a much older Brock working in a kitchen.

"Hey, did you fall asleep or what?" Brock asks. Misty nods.

"Hey, where's Ash?" Misty asks curiously. Brock gives her a shocked look, and walks over there and puts his hand on her forehead.

"Whoa, did you hit your head or something? You know better, you haven't seen Ash in nearly ten years, and I haven't seen him for about seven." Brock states.

"But I just saw him… five minutes ago." Misty stammers.

"Are you sure you aren't sick or anything?" Brock asks.

"No, I'm fine." The phone rings.

"I'll get it." Brock says, picking up the phone. After a few seconds, he looks at Misty.

"It's for you." Brock says, handing her the phone. Misty grabs the phone, and puts it to her ear.

"Hello?" She asks. There are a few moments of silence when…

"_I'll be home for Christmas._"  
  
************************************************************************  
  
"Misty? Hullo?" Ash says, poking her in the side.

"Huh… where am I?" Misty asks sleepily.

"Duh! It's Christmas Eve and we're camping? Remember?" Ash says, sitting next to her.

"I uh… could have sworn I was somewhere else. I had a weird dream.... made no sense."

"Dreams aren't supposed to make sense. You should know that. Or are you an exception?" Ash asks with a goofy grin. Misty looks at him and rolls her eyes.

"Oh shut up."

"Fine." There are a few moments of silence.

"It seemed so real." Misty says, looking at Ash.

"What? Are you saying you believe in dreams coming true now, or what?" Ash asks curiously.

"You're so arrogant. I said the dream was real, not "I really hope this dream is gonna come true!"" Misty says, putting a hand on her forehead.

"Hey! I'm not agorant... whatever that word was. What was the dream about anyways?" Ash asks.

"Why would YOU want to know?" Misty asks, looking into his raven eyes. She blinks, and looks away blushing. "It wasn't really anything anyways, so you know."

"Riiiight, you expect me to believe that, do you? Come on, tell!" Ash demands.

"No! Stop bugging me!"

"TELL ME!" Ash demands again.

"No! I HATE YOU! LEAVE ME ALONE!" She yells automatically, not realizing what she said. Ash gives her a funny look, a sad one, but it turns angry.

"Well, I hate you too! You're such a sissy; always complaining about this and that, why don't you just go home for Christmas? And then STAY THERE! You're always slowing me and Brock down anyways." Ash says angrily. Misty looks at him shocked.

"Fine? You want me to? Well..." She says, grabbing her backpack- then Togepi. She grabs the box for him and throws it at him hard. "… Merry Christmas… Goodbye!" Misty yells loudly, then storms off, backpack and Togepi in hand.

"He's such an arrogant jerk!" Misty thinks to herself.

"But you love him. And you now hate him because he bothered you about a dream?" Another voice says in her mind.

"If he loves me as much as I love him, then he can follow me for all I care. I'm sick of it!" She shrugs away the small piece of guilt.

Ash is watching Misty storming off, wishing she would look back and say it was all a joke. She becomes smaller as she walks into the distance; Ash figures she's not coming back.

"I should go get her." He mutters to Pikachu. He thinks about what he said. "No, I shouldn't. I'll be much happier without her around."

"Pika." Pikachu says sadly.

"I love her…" Ash says, realizing it when Misty is finally out of sight. "MISTY!" He screams. There wasn't any reply and he knew deep inside himself that he might never see her again.  
  
************************************************************************  
  
"It's almost been 10 years since that day…" Misty thinks to herself. She sat on her bed, glancing at the posters of her favorite bands lining the walls to her room. A small picture of Ash was sitting on her lap. "He looks the same from all those years ago. Blue jacket, red hat… cute smile." A tear falls onto the picture. Misty looks out the window into the morning sun.

Misty had changed quite a bit from all those years ago. She was 24, standing at a full height of about 5' 9". Her once bright reddish-orange hair now had brown and blonde highlights streaked throughout her hair. Her hair was also much longer, grown out to about halfway down her back. She lost the yellow tank top, suspenders, and short jean shorts. She was wearing a tight pink t-shirt and dark denim capris.

"Misty!" A voice yells. "Breakfast is ready!"

"Coming!" She yells down. She was living in a small house in the outskirts of Cerulean City. She was still the gym leader of Cerulean Gym, and had been for the last six years. She had been sharing the small house with.

"Misty!" Brock pokes his head in her room. "Come on, your food is gonna get cold."

"I'm not that hungry." Misty says quietly. Brock spots the picture of Ash.

"Ah, it's all clear to me now. Why are you STILL sulking about the boy? What's it been now, ten years since you've last seen him?"

"A day shy, but who would know?"

"Misty Yawa is the perfect candidate for an answer." Misty throws a pillow at Brock. "Hey, I'm telling the truth."

"Oh shut up why don't you?" Misty asks.

"Fine, fine. Anyways, you are still coming to the dance club tonight, aren't you? You promised me."

"I don't know Brock, I really don't feel all that up to it."

"MISTY! You promised! Please come?" Brock says, with an evil grin. "If not I'll just have to blackmail you into it."

"Right. I'm sure you can." Misty says, rolling her eyes. Brock walks over to Misty's dresser and holds up a small book.

"Welcome ladies and gentlemen, to secrets of Gym Leaders. Today's section is on Misty Yawa, who buys clothes from." Misty covers Brock's mouth with her hand. "…because she likes to fantasize herself in bed with a certain boy."

"Don't you ever dare repeat that, you hear me? I'll come. You'd better be happy about this one. I do have that one picture… of you and that girl doing..." She is cut off by Brock now putting his hand over her mouth.

"Ok, ok… well, at least you're coming." Brock says with a grin.

"You owe me… or else I'll post the picture in a place that's obvious, yet you'd never find, in the gym. I mean it." Misty says while raising an eyebrow. "Anyways, get outta my room. I've got some stuff to finish up. New battle strategies, need to get those written up. It's almost the beginning of the New Year."

"Right… you do that. Just be ready to go at 6pm, ok?" Brock asks, a hint of begging in his tone.

"Sure. Now get out!"

"Fine… fine." Brock grins and shuts her door.

"Boys."  
  
************************************************************************  
  
"Gah… my hair looks so crappy." Misty mumbles to Togetic, who had just returned that night from flying a letter to her friend.

"Toge!" Togetic says excitedly. Misty forces a small smile. She twirls around in the sparkling turquoise dress she's wearing.

"Well, I guess I'd better go down. You gonna be ok alone, aren't ya girl?" Misty asks, bending down to pat Togetic's head. "Night' girl."

"Togetic toge!" Misty grins and goes out of her room. Brock is standing by the front door.

"Took you long enough." He pauses to look at Misty. He grins. "You look really nice! Maybe if you can get your mind off of Ash you might wanna actually dance with some guy."

"Uh huh, right. Let's just go, ok?" Misty asks with a sigh. Brock smiles evilly.

"She doesn't know what she's in for…" Brock thinks to himself. Brock holds the door open for Misty to walk through, and they both get in Brock's car.  
  
************************************************************************  
  
They arrive in Pallet Town about two hours later.

"May I ask why we went to Pallet Town. Cerulean's dance club is just as nice." Misty points out.

"Well, some friends wanted us to come here." Brock says with a smile.

"What do you mean by "friends"?" Misty asks, raising an eyebrow.

"You'll see." Brock's grin widens as they pull into the dance club parking lot. After a little bit of searching, they find a parking space close to the club. Brock parks, and they get out of the car.

"This better be fun…" Misty demands. Brock laughs.

"Don't worry about it, I KNOW you'll have fun. Wait a second, don't tell me you're STILL sulking about Ashy-boy." Brock realizes. Misty's eyes widen.

"Hey, I didn't say anything." Her cheeks flush crimson. They enter the dance club. It's dark, crowded, and noisy inside. People are dancing all around the two.

"Brock!" A girl's voice yells. They both turn to see a green haired girl running up to them.

"Brock, who is that?" Misty whispers to Brock. Brock grins.

"Duplica…" Misty's jaw drops.

"Brock! Hey!" Duplica says again as she hugs Brock. "Who's your friend?"

"I think you remember Misty." Brock says, smiling. Duplica hugs Misty.

"Oh wow, I would have never recognized you." Duplica says, grabbing some of Misty's hair. 

"Your hair is adorable… he'll love it!"

"Who'll love it?" Misty asks, confused by her statement. Duplica interrupts her as she is about to ask another question.

"Hey Ashton! Come over here!" Duplica yells across the crowded room. A few moments later, a tall boy with raven hair and eyes walks over to where the three are standing. He stops in front of Misty, and stares at her.

"Hi! I'm Ashton, and you must be Misty, right?" He says with a voice Misty almost could recognize. He extends his hand.

"Yeah. I'm Misty." She says nervously. She thinks to herself, _It couldn't be Ash, could it?_  
  
A/N- Ok, since this is gonna be incredibly long, I decided to make this multiple parts! Please R&R! 


	2. Kiss and Run

I'll Be Home For Christmas- The Extended Version  
  
Part 2 By Finaille Nailo  
  
"Ash?" Misty mumbles questionably. Ashton looks down at her.  
  
"Ashton." He grins at her.  
  
"Oh, right, sorry." Misty smiles back and takes a moment to gaze at Ashton. He stood about three inches taller than her, had beautiful black hair and gazed at Misty with raven eyes. Of course, it took Misty a moment to realize her hand was still in his. She blushed and freed her hand from his grip.  
  
"I'm Brock." Brock says with a grin, shaking Ashton's hand.  
  
"Nice to meet you." Ashton says, smiling back. In Misty's mind, those smiles seemed too fake, but she figured she was just freaking out. Ashton looked like Ash, I mean, even their names were so incredibly close.  
  
"I've gotta go back out on the dance floor." Ashton tells Misty, shaken away from her thoughts. A slow song starts to play. "I'll be back, and maybe we can dance later." He smiles at her, and gets lost in the crowd. Misty looks over at Duplica, who has a huge grin plastered on her face. Duplica grabs Misty's arm and walks her over to an empty table; they both sit down.  
  
"So, what do you think of Ashton?" Duplica asks excitedly.  
  
"He seems nice, but he really reminds me of someone I haven't seen in nearly," She tries to hold from breaking down into tears, "ten years."  
  
"Really? Who is it?" Duplica asks curiously.  
  
"It's no one."  
  
"No really, who is it?!" Duplica asks impatiently.  
  
"Ash. Ketchum." Misty stammers out.  
  
"Really? Yeah, I totally agree about him looking like Ashton. But Ash was so immature, and Ashton's much cuter." Duplica responds with an evil grin.  
  
"No he wasn't! Sure, he was a little strange, but he really was mature! And I think Ash is much cuter than Ashton!" Misty defends.  
  
"What? Did you have a crush on Ashy-boy Ketchum?" Duplica coos. Misty turns bright red.  
  
"Um, is it that obvious?" Misty timidly asks.  
  
"Yeah, like, totally!" Duplica grins. A new song starts, much faster than the previous one.  
  
"Ash was really sweet, I just wish we didn't get into that. WAAHHHH!!!" Misty screams startled as a person taps her on the shoulder. She turns around to see Ashton with an evil smirk on his face.  
  
"Got ya!" Ashton says with a laugh. "Wanna dance now?" Misty looks up at him.  
  
"Sure, I guess." Misty looks over at Duplica, and she winks at Misty. Misty grins and looks up at Ashton.  
  
"Let us wander out onto the dance floor, m'lady." Ashton says in his best medieval voice. Misty rolls her eyes as Ashton takes her hand and leads her out onto the crowded dance floor. Ash puts his hands on her sides and they start dancing to the beat.  
  
"So, been out here much?" Misty yells to Ashton.  
  
"Just a few times, you?" He yells back to Misty.  
  
"I live out in Cerulean, so I usually go to the dance club there. Brock forced me out all the way here in Pallet tonight." Misty screams as the music and the crowd grows louder.  
  
"Misty. Yawa? You're the Cerulean Gym Leader, aren't ya?"  
  
"Yeah, that's me." Misty says with a cute grin. They dance a while longer until the song stops. The DJ gets up to the microphone and starts to talk, but Misty and Ashton can't interpret what he's saying because of the noisy crowd. The crowd finally settles down a bit a moment later, and they can finally understand what the DJ is saying.  
  
". my friend was in a terrible car crash on this night two years ago, and she's here today. I want to dedicate the song, "I'll Be Home For Christmas" out to her." The crowd cheers loudly as the newest remix of the song starts playing. The first words started to be heard.  
  
I'll be home for Christmas.  
  
You can plan on me.  
  
"This is my favorite Christmas song." Ashton says with a smile as he wraps his arms around Misty's torso, and Misty wraps her arms around Ashton's neck. "Really? It was Ash's too." She realizes what she says and cups her mouth. Ashton gives her a surprised look for a moment, then continues.  
  
"Yeah. it's really sweet. but until a while ago, it had no meaning."  
  
"What do you mean by that?" Misty looks up into Ashton's raven eyes.  
  
"Something, well, happened."  
  
"Really? What?"  
  
"I don't want to talk about it, because it always makes me think it was my fault."  
  
"Ok, I'm totally lost, but that works." Misty grins. Ashton leans closer to Misty; their noses almost touching.  
  
"You remind me of this girl I once knew, she was so beautiful." He says, leaning closer to Misty until their lips touched. When Ashton broke the kiss, Misty had a very surprised look on her face.  
  
"I, um, I think I should probably go find Brock you know, he's probably wondering where I am." Misty says, lying as quickly as she could. "Bye Ashton, it was nice to meet you." She said with a fake smile and ran through the crowd.  
  
"Misty, wait! I'm Ash!" Ash yells to her as she runs, but it was too late. Misty never heard him.  
  
Misty ran as fast as she could to find Brock. After searching in the crowd, she spotted Brock flirting with Duplica at a table by the bar.  
  
"Brock!" She yelled. "We need to go! Please!" She had a hopeless but demanding look on her face. Brock looked at Duplica for a moment.  
  
"Well, guess I'm going. Sorry." Brock says to Duplica. Duplica just looks at him meaningfully and nods.  
  
"I understand." She replies.  
  
"Come on, Misty, let's go." Brock says, looking to Misty. They slowly walk out of the dance club. "What happened?" He asks her after they are out of the dance club.  
  
"Um, it was nothing." Misty mumbles quietly. They get into Brock's car.  
  
"Nothing, right. Please, what happened?"  
  
"Fine, well, Ashton kissed me." Misty says blandly.  
  
"And you're upset?!" Brock asks questionably.  
  
"Well, I dunno, it was strange because he was so much like Ash."  
  
"Was it Ash?"  
  
"I don't know, maybe?" Misty says innocently. Brock curses under his breath. Misty looks at him funny. "What's wrong?"  
  
"It's nothing."  
  
"Brock?" She asks with an annoyed voice.  
  
"What?"  
  
"Nothing. Let's go, ok?"  
  
"Ok." They pull out of the parking lot and head back towards Cerulean.  
  
In the dance club Ash is sitting at a table, looking miserable. Duplica comes up and sits next to him.  
  
"What did you do to her?" Duplica asks quietly.  
  
"I kissed her." Ash replies miserably.  
  
"Did you tell her?"  
  
"No. I mean, I did, but it was too late, she was gone."  
  
"You were SUPPOSED to tell her before you kissed her." Duplica reminds him.  
  
"Yeah, I know that! I don't know, I guess I just let passion get the better of me. I couldn't help but kiss her." Ash says.  
  
"Oh well, I guess we'll have to try something else. Got any ideas?"  
  
"I dunno, why don't we just go to her house tomorrow night and I'll tell her who I am? She can't run off then." Ash says with a slight smile.  
  
"That works, but why don't we spice things up a little?" Duplica says with an evil grin.  
  
"Come on, I've done enough damage to Misty's heart tonight."  
  
"No, listen to me, this is a really cute idea." She goes up to Ash and whispers in his ear. A smile overtakes the miserable look in his face.  
  
"You think it's gonna work?"  
  
"Yeah, I know it's going to work." Duplica smiles at him.  
  
************************************************************************  
  
The next morning, Misty is sitting on her bed, gazing at the photo of Ash. She looks out the window once again, but the sky was cloudy.  
  
"How perfect, it's been ten years and it's gonna rain." She says with a frown. "Well, at least the weather understands me." She looks back at the picture of Ash, when a wave of shock runs over her. She thinks to herself, "This seems a little too familiar, I don't understand." But before she can figure out why this moment seemed so familiar, Brock yelled up to her.  
  
"Misty! Aren't you coming down? I called you a half-hour ago, did you fall asleep?"  
  
"No, sorry Brock! I'm coming!" She yells back down to him. She sets the picture on her bed, and starts to head out of her room, when she stops to look at herself in the picture.  
  
"I guess I have changed a lot in the last 10 years." She says with a smile. She walks downstairs to find Brock in the kitchen.  
  
"So, it's been 10 years since you've seen Ash now, huh?" Brock says with an almost too cheery smile. He got a call from Duplica early in the morning so he knows exactly what was going to be going on.  
  
"Oh, shut up." Misty demands as she sits down at the table.  
  
"Awww, is poor Misty gonna cry?"  
  
"I SAID SHUT UP!"  
  
"Ok, I'm stopping." He says and then mutters to himself, "Scary lady."  
  
"I heard that."  
  
"Hey, chill! Well, maybe to make you feel somewhat better I could give you my Christmas present a little early."  
  
"Sure, you can try and make a feeble attempt to make me feel better." Misty smirks. Brock rolls his eyes (can he do that?). "Come on Misty, cheer up!" Brock says as she sets her present down on the table. Misty snatches it and opens it carefully. She opens the box to find a locket in the shape of a Pikachu head.  
  
"Oh, wow, it's beautiful."  
  
"Go on, open the locket." Brock tells her. She opens it to find a picture of Ash, herself, and Brock at a kimono festival.  
  
"Oh wow, I remember this." She says with a smile, looking to the other photo. It was a picture of Ash and her dancing at the kimono festival. "We were so happy." She says happily to herself.  
  
"Do you like?" Brock asks with a grin.  
  
"Yeah, I love it! Thanks Brock!" She says, hugging him tightly.  
  
"Woah girl, you're gonna suffocate me!" Brock says with a laugh. "Now come on, eat your breakfast, it's already cold."  
  
"Ok, DAD!"  
  
"What did you call me?"  
  
"Nothing. I didn't call you anything."  
  
"You called me dad, didn't you?"  
  
"Um, maybe." Misty grins.  
  
"Come on, eat your breakfast."  
  
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Ash and Duplica are in Ash's living room, thinking of how the day's events would go.  
  
"You don't suppose I could send her an email or something?" Ash asks.  
  
"Well, you don't have her email address."  
  
"Oh." Ash looks down sadly.  
  
"Well, I got it from Brock. It's minimisty1225@pokenet.clr (not a real email address, so you know). Now, what I think you should do is do something of the "secret admirer" sort. Be mysterious, first email her, then call her, then do something else. I don't know what we could do, though." "Well, I do know that Cerulean has a Christmas requests, where you can send in requests and during their parade they'll play them on TV." Ash suggests.  
  
"That's a great idea!" Duplica shrieks.  
  
"Alright, then what should I tell her?" Ash asks. They pause for a moment.  
  
"Here, tell her this." She whispers in his ear and he smiles again. He gets on his computer.  
  
"Alright, this is the first one then." He types for a few seconds, then hits enter. He looks over at Duplica and they both grin at each other.  
  
A/N- I hope this is much better than my original story. Please review people, I want peoples opinions on what is better! 


	3. The Dream

I'll Be Home For Christmas- The Extended Version

Part 3

By Finaille Nailo

Misty is sitting on her bed, looking at the picture of Ash… again. _Why did we have to get into that fight? If I could only remember what I told him…_Misty sighs. _Ten years ago tonight… it changed my life forever… _She is interrupted from her thoughts when her computer makes a beeping noise.

"Gah, who could be emailing me now?" She mumbles to herself. She climbs off of her bed, and walks to her computer. She sits down, and starts typing furiously, fingers flying everywhere. She starts to check her email, starting from the older emails first. She then reaches the top email, the one she just received, with the subject…

**__**

Ten Years Ago… From Unknown Address

Misty's eyebrows raise in surprise. She clicks on the email. She gasps, for this is what it read.

**__**

Misty,

I'll be home for Christmas…

And that's all it said.

She blinked, rereading the message over and over again. She printed it off, and then Misty ran downstairs as fast as she could, to find Brock on the living room couch, reading a book.

"Brock! Oh my gosh, the weirdest thing happened!!" Misty says excitedly, sitting next to Brock on the couch.

"Slow down Misty… what happened?" Brock asks curiously. Misty takes a second to catch her breath.

"Someone sent me an email… it was so weird…" She says, while catching her breath.

"What's so weird about getting an email?" Brock asks sarcastically. Misty cocks an eyebrow at him. Brock grins. "Ok, what was in the email?"

"Here…" She says, handing him the printed copy. Brock looks at it for a moment, also rereading it many times.

"You're right, this is weird…" He says, looking up at her and handing the sheet back to her.

"You wouldn't suppose… would you?" Misty says, looking happy and sad at the same time.

"You mean, Ash?" Brock asks. Misty nods. Brock smiles to himself and puts a hand on her shoulder. Misty looks up at Brock. "Misty, it's not gonna be Ash. I mean, how would he know your email?"

Misty looks down again in thought. "Yeah, I guess you're right." She looks up with tears in her eyes.

"Misty, girl, don't cry. I bet someday you'll see Ash again." Brock says, trying to calm Misty down. Unfortunately, Brock said the possibly worst thing to say. Misty starts sobbing as Brock wraps his arms around Misty.

"I'll never get to see Ash…" Misty says in between hiccups. 

"Misty, it's ok…" Brock says reassuringly.

************************************************************************

__

I can't remember what happened all those years ago… what did I say to start the fight? I know it was my fault, it usually is.

Ash is sitting on his bed, looking at pictures from when he was younger. All of them had him and Misty in the pictures. He was gazing at the one of him and her and the Kimono Festival. _I wonder if Misty got the locket…_

"Ash!!!" Duplica yells, marching into his room. "Just got a reply that she saw the email."

He shoves the pictures in a nearby drawer. "She did? Great! So… now what?" Ash asks.

"Well, I dunno…" Duplica mumbles. They sit on his bed for nearly a half-hour, and finally come up with something.

"How bout' a phone call?" Ash asks. Duplica smacks herself in the head.

"And you couldn't have come up with it earlier?" Duplica asks in an annoyed tone.

"Hey, at least **I** came up with it." Ash says with a smug grin.

"What do you mean by that?" Duplica asks.

"You never thought of it." Ash gets a pillow thrown at him for that comment.

"Shut up."

Ash smirks at her. "Hey, I was only telling the truth. Now do you suggest I should make the phone call?"

"I think you should wait until this evening. After that, it's to Cerulean City!" Duplica says, standing on his bed and raising a fist in the air.

"Cer… Cerulean? Why would be go there?" 

"Duh, the Christmas Requests? Plus… you're gonna get her tonight!" Duplica shrieks.

"Um… get her?" Ash asks in confusion.

"I know how you feel, and she likes you too. Ash…" Duplica sits down next to him, "… you've got to tell her tonight. IN PERSON!"

"I uh… do?!" Ash asks in surprise.

"YES! You've waited too long… plus you blew it last night." Duplica says with a grin.

"I suppose you're gonna force me to do this." Ash asks her. Duplica smiles.

"Well, I'm gonna try and get Brock tonight… you might as well try and get Misty." Duplica says, cracking her knuckles.

"That makes sense… WAIT A MINUTE!!! You're gonna get… BROCK?!" Ash screams.

"Well yeah… I've always had a… little thing for him." Duplica says shyly. Ash rolls his eyes.

"You're like, the one girl besides Misty whom he's not had a thing for…" Ash reminds her.

"Yeah, so?" She stands up straight. "I'm a big girl now." 

Ash laughs. "Sure… you totally are." He looks at her for a moment and grins. "Anyways, you're not supposed to be in MY room… invading my privacy." He says, with his bottom lip protruded.

"Fine… kick me out… and I come up with all the ideas." Duplica pouts as she walks to the door.

"Don't pout, I came up with the idea." Ash says with another smug grin. "See ya in a few hours." Duplica leaves his room. He goes over to the drawer, and takes out the pictures of Misty. He places them on his bed, and takes his favorite one from the pile, a cute picture at Halloween. Misty was a sexy Horsea, and Ash was a vampire. _Our first kiss… I wonder if this plan is actually gonna work…_Ash yawns and closes his eyes.

************************************************************************

Brock and Misty are sitting in Misty's room, looking at old pictures. 

"Hey, this is the one right before you ran away!" Brock exclaims, holding up a picture.

"Really? Let me see it!" Misty demands, snatching the picture from Brock's grip. Misty sighs and frowns as she looks at the picture. _Halloween… it was our first kiss… well, only on the cheek, but still, he kissed me. He was so cute in that vampire costume… and he told me that I was the cutest Horsea he had ever seen._ Misty smiles. Brock looks up at Misty and smiles.

"Feeling better?" Brock asks. Misty nods.

"Much better, thank you." Misty says nicely. Brock gets up from her bed.

"Why don't I bring up some tea?" Brock suggests.

"That would be nice." 

"Don't forget about the Christmas Movie Marathon tonight." Brock reminds her as he leaves her room. Misty snorts.

"Trust me, I can't forget… not with you around." After Brock leaves, Misty looks around the room. _I can't tell Brock how much I miss Ash… he'll just make things worse. I want to see Ash again… so badly. _A tear forms, and Misty lies her head on a pillow. _Someday I'll see him… _she closes her eyes.

************************************************************************

(_Regular italics are Misty's thoughts; **Bold italics are Ash's thoughts**_)

__

Man… where am I? I feel like I've been sleeping on a sharp rock… Misty rubs her eyes as she regains consciousness.

"Misty? Hullo?" She hears a voice say, and feels a poke in her side.

"Huh? Where am I?" She asks sleepily, opening her eyes to see Ash at her side.

"Duh! It's Christmas Eve and we're camping in the middle of nowhere." Ash says. Misty looks down at her body, to find the same old clothes she always used to wear when she was younger. _No way… I'm back… it's ten years in the past._

"Sorry… I coulda sworn this was a dream…" Misty says with a sigh. She looks up at Ash and smiles. "It made absolutely no sense."

**__**

Something's not right about this…

"Dreams aren't supposed to make sense." Ash says with a smile. _This is too familiar… _Misty looks up at him. There are a few moments of silence.

"Ash?"

"Yes?"

"Is it me, or is this moment awkwardly familiar?" Misty asks. 

**__**

Oh wow, she notices too… 

This is just too weird…

"Yeah, it is… it seems like it's happened before." Ash replies. 

**__**

The fight… I know it. 

It has to be the moment of the fight.

"Ash, remember the fight we had?"

__

Will he remember?

****

What do I say?

"Yeah, the fight we had ten years ago?" Ash asks. Misty nods.

"That's the one."

__

He remembers…

****

Misty… I'm so sorry…

"Misty… I didn't mean to start that fight." Ash says sincerely.

"I didn't mean for it to happen." Misty says quietly. They stand there silently for a moment. At the same time, they both run up to each other in a loving embrace.

"Misty…" Ash says, stroking her hair, "I'm so sorry. Will you ever forgive me?" Tears leak out of Misty's eyes.

"Yes! I forgive you… I don't know what I'd do without you." Misty says innocently. They both look into each other's eyes.

**__**

Kiss her…

Kiss him…

They both lean forward and kiss…

In the distance, two screams are heard.

************************************************************************

"Misty!!" A voice yells, following the sound of shattering glass. Misty slowly wakes up from her bed, to find Brock running into her room. "Misty, are you ok?" He yells as he goes up to her bed.

"Yeah… I just had a bad dream…" Misty says groggily. Brock puts his hand on her forehead.

"You scared the hell outta me… are you ok? No fever…" Brock says worriedly. Misty grins.

"Brock, I'm fine… I had a really weird dream." She tells him. He sits on the bed, next to her.

"Really? What was it about?" 

"Ash and I… we were back at the same place before our fight ten years ago. It was so real… it was like, he was having the exact same dream." Misty says quietly. Brock smiles.

"Just remember, it was just a dream." Brock says. As he's saying this, the phone rings. "I wonder who could be calling at 4pm on Christmas Eve?" He goes over to Misty's phone.

"Hello? … Oh yes, she's here." He looks up at Misty. "It's for you."

"Who is it?" 

Brock grins. "Didn't say. Just take it!" Misty grabs the phone from Brock.

"Hello?" There's a moment of silence…

"_I'll be home for Christmas…_" She hears a click, and a dial tone.

"Who was that?" Brock asks. Misty shrugs, hangs the phone up, and walks into the other room.

__

That voice… it was almost the same as Ash's… from the dream. It couldn't be, could it? Misty falls on her knees. _I hope… _She breaks down crying before she could finish her thought.

************************************************************************

Ash reaches over to hang up the phone. _I'm so nervous… in just a few hours I'm going to see Misty again…_

"Ready to go, Ash?" Duplica asks, grabbing her purse off of the table. 

"Yeah, I'm ready." 

Duplica grins and stands on the chair. "Tonight, we're getting our soul mates… Ash?" She looks around the room to see Ash gone. All of a sudden, Ash pushes her off the chair.

"Enough with the act…" Ash says with a grin, "… let's go!"

A/N- I hope you liked! R&R!!!

__


	4. Malls and Movies

I'll Be Home For Christmas

Part 4

By Finaille Nailo

"Tough day, huh?" Brock asks, walking into the living room with a box of tissues. Misty's face was red from crying. He hands her the tissues, and she takes one and blows into it.

"Yeah… tough…" Misty says with a sigh.

"Personally, I'd be just scared to death if I'd gotten an email and a phone call and all the person said "I'll be home for Christmas" and that's it. I mean, think about it?" Brock says, sitting next to her on the couch. Misty glares at him for saying that, and Brock sighs. "Do you want me to rub your back?"

Misty nods. "That would be nice, thanks." She says, sniffing. She turns her back on him, and he starts to massage her back.

"I just hope you feel better…" Brock says sincerely. Misty smiles, although Brock can't see her face.

"Thanks… hey Brock?"

"Yeah?"

"I know you said that the email and the phone call couldn't have been from Ash…" Misty says; Brock coughs as she says this. "… Well, what if it was?"

Brock shrugs, and turns her around to face him. "I'm sure he'd be trying to find you…"

"Is that what you'd do?" Misty asks curiously. "If you were Ash, I mean."

"Well, I don't know… I mean, I'm the romantic type of guy… but I haven't really been able to hold a decent relationship…" 

"And we all know why that's happened…" Misty says with a smug grin. Brock's eyes widen, and he hits Misty playfully.

"Very funny…" Brock says.

"It was, wasn't it?" He rolls his eyes, and scoops her up in a hug.

"Hey Misty, I've just realized something I haven't told you." He whispers in her ear.

"And what's that?"

"I love you…"

Misty blinks uncontrollably, and pushes Brock off of her onto the ground and starts to freak out. "EWWWWWWWWWW!!!!!"

Brock grins evilly. "I was just kidding… I do love you, but only as a friend." He snickers. "I deserved that though… anyways, what I was going to say is, I haven't told you what Ash told me after you left."

"That wasn't very… wait, what? He… said something?"

"Misty, he missed you… he wasn't himself after you left… you do know he quit the league, right?"

"He did?"

Brock nods. "All because you left. He spent weeks searching for you… we both thought you went back home to Cerulean."

"I didn't want to see him again, so I went to the one place you two wouldn't have gone looking…"

"Which was…?"

"I went to the Orange Islands… I went back to Rudy. But we too got in a huge fight… so I came to back to Cerulean…"

"That must have been three years ago… the same time Ash and I left our separate ways." Brock says. "Really bad timing… if you were a week earlier, you would have seen Ash. We were in Cerulean, your sisters invited us."

"Hey, wait, wouldn't that mean when we moved in together you were still talking to Ash? And never told me?" Misty asks.

"I suppose it's time I told you the truth about everything, huh?" Brock asks. Misty's eyes became focused on Brock's.

"The truth?"

"Last night… at the dance club… Ashton was…" The phone interrupts Brock.

"I'll go get it." Misty says, hopping off of the couch and running to the phone. "Hello?"

"Hey, this is Duplica, is Brock there?"

"Oh yeah, hi! I'll go get him." She sets the phone down. "BROCK!!"

"What?"

"Phone for you!" He walks up to Misty and she hands Brock the phone. Misty goes back into the living room and sits down, staring at the blank TV screen.

__

Last night… at the dance club… Ashton was? Ashton was WHAT??? What did Brock mean? Wait… could Ashton be Ash??? No no no!! That couldn't be… he wouldn't do that to me, would he? Misty glances at the clock. _It's six… guess I should turn the TV on… the marathon is gonna start._ She grabs the remote, and turns it to their local channel just as Brock walks into the room.

"Hey, what did Duplica want?" Misty asks curiously.

"Oh… um… she just wanted to say Merry Christmas. Hey! The movies are starting!" He sits down next to her.

Misty rolls her eyes, "What a way to spend Christmas Eve… six hours of pointless movies."

"Shut up… I won't be able to hear… OW!"

"Never tell me to shut up." Misty says after smacking Brock in the side of the head. _How great… Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer… _Misty thinks to herself as the first movie starts. _I know this story so much I could recite it backwards…_ She sighs and makes herself comfortable…

************************************************************************

"On the road to Cerulean City!" Duplica sings happily… and loudly. They are both in Ash's car, about 20 miles away from Cerulean City.

"DUPLICA! That's Viridian City! And will you shut up for five minutes?" Ash asks, tapping on the steering wheel impatiently.

"Aw Ash, have some more fun in your life!"

"It would help if you were quieter… you're so loud…" Ash says, rolling his eyes.

"Worried about tonight?"

"Yeah…"

"Ashy-boy, she'll be ecstatic to see you! You worry too much, things will be fine!" Duplica convinces Ash. He smiles.

"Yeah, you're right." Ash smiles. "You know, for some reason when I first met you, I knew you liked Brock."

"Really?" Duplica asks, a little surprised.

"Yeah, at the theater… you were all flirty around him. And you, besides Misty, were like the only girl he never seemed to have a crush on, he treated you like a little kid." He smiles at her. "You definitely don't look like a kid now, but you still act like one." He says with a laugh. 

"Oh… thanks…" Duplica mutters, looking out the window and crossing her arms. Ash reaches over and rubs her shoulder.

"Hey, it was supposed to be a compliment…" She looks at him with a smug grin.

"You are WAY too gullible."

"Am not."

"Am too!"

"Am not!!!"

"AM TOO!"

"OK! Fine, I am…" Ash sighs as they pass a sign that says, Welcome To Cerulean City! Home of the Famous Water Gym!

"Ok, we need to take the Goldeen Street exit to get the to mall…" Duplica says, looking at the various signs covering both sides of the road. Within minutes, they reach the exit, and Ash pulls into it. They find the mall shortly after. They find a parking place, and walk inside. Ash stops in awe, and stares in the huge mall.

"Woah… this is much bigger than I thought it would be." Ash says, blinking and looking around.

"Well duh! This is the largest mall in Kanto, it was just built a few years ago."

"Must have been, I thought the largest mall was in Celadon City." Ash says.

"Well, not anymore." She glances at her watch. "It's only seven, we've got quite a bit of time. Wait, I think… what time do you want to go to Misty's?"

"Maybe around midnight… we still gotta do the Christmas requests so then, how about we meet back right here at 8:45?" Ash asks her. Duplica nods in agreement.

"M'kay, see ya in a little while then, Ashy-boy!" She giggles and Ash rolls his eyes. Duplica smiles and walks toward an escalator. Ash looks around for a moment and sighs. He spots a sign with a listing of stores nearby and walks up to it.

"Let's see… jewelry stores… 20 JEWELRY STORES???" He yells in surprise. Many people around him stared with confused looks. Ash sweatdrops and smiles nervously. _Guess I should take one at a time… I do have a while…_He sighs again, and walks away to find the first one on the list.

************************************************************************

"Finally, it's over…" Misty sighs, somewhat overdramatically. "I've seen Rudolph WAY too many times." 

"Oh come on Mist, you know you love it." Brock says, grinning and nudging her shoulder playfully.

"Riiiight… sure I do. So, what torture are we going to watch next?" Misty asks with a sarcastic tone.

"Actually, we have about fifteen minutes till the next one comes on."

"What do they do until then?" 

"Christmas requests."

"Oh, those… my sister got one once. Her husband asked her to marry her over it." Misty says, smiling.

"Lily, right?"

"Yeah." There's a moment of awkward silence.

"So, think you figured out who emailed and called you?" Brock ponders curiously.

Misty sighs and looks down. "No, I haven't a clue who did… but I somehow think the boy who called me was Ash…"

"Misty, you're insane, it couldn't be Ash… we've gone through this before."

"Yes, yes, I know that quite well! It's just my opinion though, I _am_ entitled to have one you know." Misty smirks. Brock sighs.

"Well if you get your heart broken, I'll comfort you, but it's not my fault you know." Brock says. He smiles at her.

Misty slaps her forehead in frustration. _He still doesn't understand… I know he means well, but still, he'll never understand._ "Um, yeah, thanks Brock." 

"No problem. Anyways, the next movie is about it come on." Brock says, glancing at the clock.

"And the torture is…? You didn't tell me the last time I asked."

"Oh, right, I thought you were asking when it came on." Misty rolls her eyes. "Anyways, I think it's Christmas on the Sea."

"Wow, they're actually playing a decent movie?" Misty asks, somewhat surprised.

"Hey, there are other Christmas movies besides the cheesy ones, you know." Brock jokes.

"No… really, I never would have guessed."

"Oh shut up, it's coming on…"

************************************************************************

__

Bleh, eight stores just to find the perfect engagement ring… "I'll take that one sir." Ash says to the man behind the counter, pointing to a beautiful ring; an 18-carat gold ring with a Starmie on it, and the middle of the Starmie a beautiful, shiny red ruby. Ash pays for the ring, and walks out of the store with a small bag in his hand and a smile on his face.

He glances at his watch. _I've still got nearly a half-hour… maybe Duplica also finished her "business" early. Guess I should go back to where we split up._ As luck had it, when he returned to find Duplica sitting on a bench, looking outside.

"Duplica!" He calls out. She smiles and turns to him.

"Hey, did you get the ring?" She asks. He nods. "Well, do I get to see it?" Ash digs it out of the bag and carefully shows it to her.

"So, what do you think?" Ash asks, somewhat embarrassed.

"Oh come on, stop acting like a young schoolboy, it's beautiful. She'll love it. So, where to next?" 

"Guess we should find out where in the world the TV station who does the Christmas requests is." Ash says.

"Yeah, generally that would be good if we knew that." Duplica says with an evil grin. "Well, let's go!" They walk out to Ash's car, and drive off to find a gas station (they need directions ^^).

A/N- Bleh, I finally get this out… IT'S BEEN TOO LONG! Sorry, dates and friends have consumed most of my time. Please review and I hope you've enjoyed this. There should only be a part or two left. Thanks for reading!!!!


	5. Final Message

I'll Be Home For Christmas- The Extended Version

Part 5

By Finaille Nailo

~ A boy and a girl are looking happily at each other, as the boy leans in to kiss the girl. Seconds later, _The End_ flashes on the screen. ~

Brock changes the channel, as Misty wipes a tear from her cheek. "That was pretty sad, wasn't it Brock?" Misty comments. He nods.

"But you've seen this movie like, a ton of times. How can you _still_ cry?" 

"I'm a girl, what do you think?" She remarks. "Anyways, it's ten, I think I'm gonna go to bed…"

"NO!" Brock shouts the moment Misty says that. Misty blinks in confusion.

"No what?" She asks, scrunching her eyebrows.

"Come on, please stay up with me to watch the parade… please?" Brock gets on his knees sarcastically and begs. Misty rolls her eyes.

"I dunno…"

"PLEASE???" _I'm not gonna let this opportunity go._ Brock thinks to himself. 

Misty sighs, "Fine, I'll stay up… but if I'm cranky tomorrow morning it is _not_ my fault." 

Brock grins evilly. "Maybe that person who keeps on saying _I'll be home for Christmas_ will pop up again somehow… in letter… in person…"

"What are you getting at?" Misty snaps at him.

"Oh nothing, I was just teasing anyways…"

"Yeah, I think I did figure who sent that email and the phone call… now that you mention it." Misty states.

"Well, who?" Brock asks curiously.

"Some 15-year-old kid I've battled who wants to confess his love to me." Misty says sarcastically. Brock blinks for a moment.

"Besides the 15-year-old, who else would?" Misty throws a pillow cushion at Brock. "Hey, _you _were being sarcastic."

"Well, _I_ wasn't giving _you _a hard time." Misty says, laying her head down on the side of the couch. _I really hate not knowing who this person who's sending me those messages is! It's driving me insane! Sure… I thought it was Ash, but Brock gave a pretty convincing argument, it's _not_ Ash. _A tear rolls down her cheek. 

I miss Ash so much, if there was any way I could see him again… I'd take it… I must see him!!! Ok, ok, girl, get a hold of yourself, first you're curious about who the person is, and now all I can think about is Ash!! This is so messed up!

Misty is snapped out of her thoughts by a waving hand in front of her face. She looks up at Brock. "Whatcha thinking about?" He asks, sitting closer to her.

"Nothing…" Misty mumbles. _This is crazy… I'd wish he'd just let me go to bed so I can just cry this pain away… Ash…_

*********************************************************************************

After about an hour searching for the TV station, and after about another hour and a half of waiting just to get Ash's _request_ on air, Ash and Duplica leave the TV station, somewhat exhausted.

"Wow, that was really crazy." Duplica says, rubbing her forehead. "That place was so crowded, I have a huge headache now."

"Well, forget it, it's 11:15pm, and we need to get to Misty's house before it gets to be too late." Ash tells her.

"Yeah, I know. I'm so excited! And yet again, so nervous!!!" Duplica says as they get into Ash's car.

"So, Brock does know we're coming, right?" Ash asks.

"Yeap, called him this afternoon." Duplica says matter-of-factly.

"Ok, I'm just making sure you know. Does he know that _you're_ coming?" Ash asks curiously.

"Nope, all he knows is to expect just you around midnight. I sorta wanted to make my visit for Brock… I dunno, a surprise." Duplica says, twirling a strand of her green hair. Ash reaches into his pocket to pull out a slip of paper.

"Ok…" Ash mumbles, "Misty's house is on the northwest side of town… we're on the southeast." He says, glancing at the street number at the next corner. "Duplica, help me look for 22nd Street, northeast, alright?"

"Yeah, sure, no problem." Duplica answers. Then find it about ten minutes later, and Ash turns left onto the street. "Sheesh, it's so close to midnight, I'm getting even more nervous!"

Ash sighs and looks down for a brief moment. _I am too… I don't know how she'll react. I hope she'll be excited as I am… _"Ok, down we need to find Cerulean Water Lane…"

"I'm looking, I'm looking…" Duplica says automatically…

*********************************************************************************

"Ok, Brock, I have no idea why you're making me stay up, but I _am_ going to bed at midnight, no ifs, ands, or buts." They glance at the TV, playing the last of the Christmas requests.

"Fine, fine, whatever…" Brock says, sitting on the couch with a smug grin on his face.

Misty looks at Brock, and then the TV. "What is it? You're acting so, so…" She falls silent as the TV shows something she was _not_ expected.

"Our last Christmas request tonight goes out to Misty Yawa…" And the message is shown on the TV.

__

I'll be home for Christmas,

Just stay up a little longer, Misty.

Love,

Anonymous

Misty is deathly silent. She looks at Brock, who still has the grin plastered on his face. _I don't trust Brock… he knows something! _"BROCK!!! You had better tell me what the hell is going on, right now!!!" She says, strangling him by the neck.

"I… uh, can't…" Brock manages to choke out. "It's a secret!" After a moment, Brock is released from Misty's death grip. 

Misty looks at the TV once more, still in disbelief. _The person who's been sending me those messages is coming… here!_ She glances at the clock. _It's five minutes to midnight… no one would come at this hour. _

DDIIIINNNGG DDOOOONNNGGG!!!

__

Or maybe they would… Misty looks at Brock. 

"Well, aren't you going to get that?" Brock asks, smiling. Nervously, Misty walks to the door, and opens it. To her surprise, _Ashton_ and Duplica are standing in the doorway, both smiling sheepishly.

"Ashton! Duplica! What are you two doing here?" Misty asks, obviously surprised. "Ok, please don't tell me it was _you_ two sending those messages… please!"

"Hate to burst your bubble Misty, but it was." Ash says, grinning. "May I talk to you alone?"

"Um, where is Brock?" Duplica asks shyly. Misty lets them inside. 

"Brock's on the couch." Duplica nervously walks over to him, leaving Misty and… (:: cough :: a hem) _Ashton_ alone. "Come on Ashton, what is it?"

"Can we talk somewhere… I dunno, more in private?" Ash asks. Misty rolls her eyes. 

"Fine." She grabs his hand and leads him up into her room. "Well, tell me! What is it?" But Ash ignores her, looking around the room. His eyes focus on a picture of Ash, Misty, and Brock, taken when they were in Goldenrod City. He walks up to the picture, and takes a hold if it. He smiles.

"I remember this day… it was after I beat Whitney." Ash says, smiling more, and looking at the once again surprised Misty.

"Wait… what?" Misty asks, confused. She snatches the picture, looking up from the picture, to Ashton, and doing that several times. 

__

No way… it can't be!!! Ashton… is ASH!!! I was _right!!! Oh… god, I feel like I'm gonna faint…_

"Ash?"

"Yes?" They both stare at each other for a moment, then Misty runs up to Ash and hugs him. She starts to cry.

"Ash… I'm so sorry!!!" She confesses. Ash picks her up and sets her on her bed. He sits next to her, as she buries her head in his shirt.

"It's ok… it's ok…" He says, stroking her hair. After a few minutes, Misty regains her composure and looks up at Ash.

"Why didn't you tell me last night?" Misty asks.

"I wanted to." Ash sighs. "But you ran off after I kissed you… that's when I was planning on telling you."

"Oh… sorry…" Misty mumbles. Ash grins.

"I understand… I guess I'd be freaked out of one of my girl friends pretended to be someone else and tried to kiss me… I'm _still_ pretty… air-headed…" Ash says, rubbing his head. Misty grins. "There we go, you're smiling again… you have such a beautiful smile."

Misty blushes. "Thank you. So, how have you been?"

"I've been alright… I've missed you so much… ever since you left." Ash says, looking around uncomfortably.

"You missed me… ever since I left?"

"Yes, I did. I didn't _want _you to leave, but I was stubborn." He smiles.

"I heard you quit the league…" Misty says softly. He blinks.

"Who told you?" He asks curiously. 

"Brock did, this afternoon… I'm sorry if I hurt you _that_ much… I never intended to. I always thought you… didn't really like me." Misty says, cracking her knuckles.

Ash laughs hysterically. "You thought I _hated _you?? Far from it!" His face turns serious. "Misty, I thought I'd _never _be able to tell you this, but I love you too."

"You love me… _too?_" Misty asks, puzzled. Ash grins. 

"Guess you don't remember, huh?" He reaches into a pocket and pulls out a small bracelet. "It doesn't fit anymore, but I used to wear it all the time."

"It's the charm bracelet I got for you for Christmas ten years ago! But, what does it have to…" She remembers what words the larger charm said… "Oh… yes, that." Ash wraps his arms around her tiny waist, kissing her on the forehead.

"I actually didn't uncover that "hidden message" until a while later… I was shocked that you… loved me." Ash whispers in her ear. 

"I do love you."

"I love you too." Misty looks Ash in the eye, and Ash leans in to kiss her. This time Misty accepts the kiss, and it lasts for a while. Ash's tongue traces around Misty's lips, waiting for approval. Misty invitingly opens her mouth, as Ash tastes the sweetest of her mouth. 

They slowly remove piece by piece of clothing, all falling on the floor next to her bed. For the first time, they both experience the true meaning of love, exploring new places they both had never been before, reaching new heights. 

Later, the two are in Misty's bed, snuggling. Ash smiles at Misty.

"I'm glad to be with you again."

Misty smiles. "I'm glad to be with you." She mumbles. Ash kisses her softly on the lips, and reaches down on the ground. "What are you doing?"

Ash grins, as he scoops up a small box. He wraps his arms around Misty, and reveals to her the box.

"Misty Yawa, will you marry me?" Ash asks, opening the box slowly. Misty's eyes are wide with shock, and tears slide down her cheeks.

"Yes, Ash Ketchum…" She says, smiling. Ash's hands nervously place the ring on Misty's left ring finger. He sets the empty box back down on the ground, and glides his hands up and down Misty's bare back. 

"I love you so much…" He whispers.

"I love you too." She replies. They both fall asleep peacefully.

*********************************************************************************

Four months later, Ash and Misty were wed, along with… surprisingly enough, Brock and Duplica. At the wedding reception, Ash and Misty smile as they go out onto the dance floor for the first dance.

"You're so beautiful tonight…" He says, patting Misty's stomach. Misty was four months pregnant, and very excited. She gives Ash a funny look.

"Just tonight?" She asks. He chuckles.

"Always."

__

~ The End ~

A/N- Wow, it's finished! :: Sings songs of praises :: I can finally get started on my next fanfic!!! Anyways, thanks for reading and PLEASE review!


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